Interconnection of integrated circuits to other circuit boards, cables or electronic devices is known in the art. Such interconnections typically have not been difficult to form, especially when the circuit switching speeds (also referred to as edge rates or signal rise times) have been slow when compared to the length of time required for a signal to propagate through a conductor in the interconnect or in the printed circuit board. As user requirements grow more demanding with respect to circuit switching speeds, the design and manufacture of interconnects that can perform satisfactorily in terms of electrical performance has grown more difficult.
In addition, the use of faster switching speeds can be restricted by electromagnetic interference (EMI). EMI is a disturbance caused by electromagnetic radiation emitted from an external source. The disturbance may interrupt, obstruct, or otherwise degrade or limit the effective performance of an electrical circuit. The source may be any object, artificial or natural, that carries rapidly changing electrical currents.
Connectors have been developed to provide the necessary impedance control for high speed circuits, i.e., circuits with a transmission frequency of at least 5 GHz. Although many of these connectors are useful, there is still a need in the art for connector designs having closely controlled electrical characteristics as well as adequate protection from electromagnetic interference (EMI) emissions to achieve satisfactory control of the signal integrity.